News & Events

Rice is the staple food for half of the world’s population. It is the primary source of calories for billions of people, primarily from low-income households, making it a critical crop for achieving food, nutrition, social, and livelihood security. Rice and its production process shape cultures and social dynamics. It is a valuable crop in Asia, positioned at the heart of nations and their economies. Consumer preference is also growing across Africa due to changing diets and urbanization. Rice production, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, has overtaken demand.

The genome exhibits significant structural peculiarities, presenting as an atypical circular structure accompanied by an independent minicircle, forming a multi-branched reticulate configuration spanning a total length of 981,249 bp. Within the mitochondrial genome of P. leptostachya, a total of 52 genes have been identified, including 35 PCGs, 14 tRNAs and 3 rRNAs. (2) A phylogenetic tree was built for 22 species based on the DNA sequences. P. leptostachya belongs to the family Piperaceae within the order Piperales and is closely related to Piper nigrum.

Prime editing (PE) enables precise genome modifications without donor DNA or double-strand breaks, but its application in dicot plants has faced challenges due to low efficiency, locus dependence, and poor heritability. Here, we develop an ultra-efficient prime editing (UtPE) system for dicots by integrating evolved PE6 variants (PE6c and PE6ec), an altered pegRNA (aepegRNA), an RNA chaperone, and a geminiviral replicon. UtPE significantly improves editing performance in tomatoes, with UtPEv1 excelling in simple edits (unstructured RTTs)

Climate change poses growing risks to food systems in India, disproportionately affecting smallholder farmers, women, and marginalised communities. Digital agro-advisories have emerged as a promising tool to support climate-resilient agriculture by delivering timely, localised, and actionable information (FAO, 2024, The unjust climate – Measuring the impacts of climate change on rural poor, women, and youth).

The Hevea brasiliensis is the only commercial source of natural rubber. In natural rubber production, exogenous ethylene is widely used as a stimulant for increasing rubber latex yield. To reveal the potential regulation mechanisms for ethylene stimulation of natural rubber production in H. brasiliensis, we performed an integrative analysis of transcriptomics and proteomics for ethylene-stimulated rubber latex. A total of 35,306 genes and 3,620 proteins were successfully identified from the different latex samples upon ethylene stimulation.

Researchers from the University of Tennessee and partners pyramided cry genes in eucalyptus to control brown looper caterpillar (Thyrinteina arnobia) infestation. The findings are published in GM Crops & Food. In Brazil, the brown looper caterpillar is a major problem for eucalyptus farms. The pest causes severe defoliation and up to 40% reduction in biomass. To control this devastating pest, the research team used genetic engineering to transform trees to produce three cry insecticidal proteins (Cry1Ab, Cry1Bb, and Cry2Aa) from Bacillus thuringiensis.

Farmers have been continuously contributing to evolving crop varieties that fit specific locations and changing conditions. There are different possibilities for recognizing farm innovations in India. The Biological Diversity Act ensures equitable sharing of benefits to the conservers of biological resources, their by-products, creators or holders of traditional knowledge, innovations and practices associated with such resources. The National Innovation Foundation scouts and supports grassroots innovations that have been developed without any help from a formal sector.

The plasma membrane-resident receptor-like kinases (RLKs) and their cognate peptide ligands play crucial roles in plant growth and development. The RLK BARELY ANY MERISTEM1 (BAM1) promotes phloem formation and regulates other aspects of root development. However, the mechanisms governing BAM1 protein degradation remain unclear. In this study, we demonstrate that two closely related ubiquitin ligases, RING DOMAIN LIGASE 1 (RGLG1) and RGLG2, specifically interact with BAM1 and its closest homolog BAM2. RGLG1/2 ubiquitinate BAM1/2 and mediate their degradation,

Researchers from the University of Montenegro in Europe and partner institutions examined how consumer perceptions of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) influence the adoption of agricultural biotechnology in the country. The study, published in GM Crops & Food, revealed significant insights into how public acceptance and concerns about human and animal health and the environment shape consumer attitudes.

The 2025-30 Research Portfolio is intended to accelerate and strengthen the implementation of CGIAR’s 2030 Strategy. It aims to raise the ambition for our science and innovation by bringing together and leveraging collective capabilities of all CGIAR Research Centers. Our Portfolio focuses on addressing major global challenges such as climate change, gender and social inequalities, poor-quality diets, rural poverty, environmental degradation, and issues stemming from fragility, conflict, and violence.

Cashew nut oil adds value to the production chain of this Brazilian oilseed. It is a good source of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids and bioactive compounds, such as phenolics. This study investigated the effects of cashew nut oil on the metabolism of animals subjected to a high-fat diet. C57BL/6J mice were fed a high-fat diet (12 weeks), then switched to diets containing cashew nut oil, soybean oil, or lard (12 weeks).

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO Panel) has released its scientific opinion on the safety of genetically modified (GM) soybean MON 94313 for food and feed uses. Following a comprehensive risk assessment, the Panel concluded that the soybean is as safe as its conventional counterpart and non-GM reference varieties with respect to potential effects on human and animal health and the environment.